‘Bus Stop’
strikes viewer
as worthwhile
By STEVEN HENEGAR
Of the Emerald
The time I’ve spent in small
Kansas bus stops was never so
pleasant as the time I spent at the
Oregon Repertory Theatre’s pro
duction of William Inge’s “Bus
Stop.”
While there might have been
more to it, the company’s first
major production in its new At
rium Theater space is well worth
seeing. H runs Thursday through
Sunday evenings at 8:30 p.m.
Inge's comic and sometimes
poignant play, about travelers
stranded in a small Kansas bus
stop during a snow storm, has
r€VI€UJ
been said to be one of his best
However, the plot and characters
are almost entirely predictable.
This is not saying that it is a poor
script, for Inge's focus wasn’t on
presenting a completely new
story and original characters. His
interest lay in the humanity of his
characters.
The direction, by Andrew Trais
ter, while generally competent
and steady, occasionally under
mines the humanity of the situa
tion by undercutting the reality. At
times, the emphasis seems to be
on comedy itself, forcing it to the
forefront rather that letting it de
velop through character relation
ships.
There are other points, how
ever, when the humor grows
naturally from character interac
tion. They provided fewer belly
laughs, but in the end were much
more enjoyable and real.
My other quibble is purely
technical. While keeping several
things happening at once and
thus supporting the naturalness
and reality of the situation, Trais
ter then works against himself by
inconsistently applying a stage
convention.
I am perfectly willing to believe
that several small groups to
gether on a small acting area
should be able to talk in individual
groups without the others over
hearing. However, when one
character can hear those in the
other groups, or another charac
ter conveniently overhears two
across the room, I am not certain
what to accept as real.
Another problem is the play's
use of stereotypes (all the
characters in the play). It's not
that they are unreal or lack hu
manity (after all, what makes them
stereotypes is that they embody
human traits). The problem lies in
that sometimes actors and direc
tors tend to fall back on merely
indicating these traits, rather than
playing the characters as real
people.
James Robinson designed the
finely sleazied set with its bat
tered counter and wood stove
hovered over by signs advertising
homemade pies and five-cent
coffee. Diane Mundt's costumes
were each entirely part of the
character and mood, right down
to the worn and slightly tom lace
on the dress of the third-rate
singer.
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